MTP Sermon Resources

Luke 2:1-7 November 29, 2020 • Mount Pleasant UMC Yep, I’m with you. This is not the Advent any of us planned. I think I said something similar back a few months during the season of Lent, leading up to Easter! And I’ll be very honest: I’m frustrated and a little angry that we’re online again at this time of year. Yes, we will make the best of it, and yes we will get through it, but of all the times of the year that I most want to be together with friends and family, it’s this time of the year. Of all the times I want to be in our worship center, decorated for Christmas, it’s this time of year. I imagine I am not alone in that, and so I want you to know: I understand, I get it. This is not the Advent we hoped for. This is not the Advent we wanted. But it’s the Advent we have, and at this point, we don’t know what the next four weeks will hold. It’s an uncertain Advent at best. But then I got to thinking—or maybe it was the Holy Spirit whispering—that it really wasn’t much different

  “The Holiest Thing” Sermon Study Guide for November 29, 2020 Downloadable Version Scripture: Luke 2:1-7 1. “In Those Days…” Caesar… “No room in the inn…” 2. Hospitality… Doing what needs to be done… _______________ is the holiest thing… Connected but lonely… Questions to Discuss or Ponder: In what way(s) were Joseph and Mary challenged by the circumstances of “those days”? What difference does it make to understand Joseph’s choice for lodging as a home? What is your definition of hospitality? In what way(s) do you regularly practice such hospitality? Why is your neighbor “the holiest object” you can see? Where have you experienced the pandemic of loneliness in your world? What is a way you will live out the Biblical demand of hospitality toward your neighbor today or this week? Scripture for the Week: Monday - Matthew 22:34-40 Tuesday - 1 John 2:3-11 Wednesday - 1 John 3:11-24 Thursday - Romans 12:9-21 Friday - Isaiah 54:2-3 Saturday - Matthew 2:1-12 In response

Luke 19:1-10 November 15, 2020 • Mount Pleasant UMC All right, everybody together, if you know the song—let’s get this out of the way because I know you’re thinking it. Zacchaeus was a wee little man, And a wee little man was he! He climbed up in a sycamore tree For the Lord he wanted to see! And as the Savior passed that way, He looked up in the tree, And he said, “Zacchaeus, you come down! For I’m goin’ to your house today! For I’m goin’ to your house today!” I remember singing that song so many times in the basement of the Rossville United Methodist Church—along with, of course, the motions (most of which I still remember). So whenever I hear the name “Zacchaeus,” I naturally and immediately think, “wee little man.” But there’s so much more to this man than his height. This morning, Zacchaeus will show us how to respond to Jesus and his generosity. This morning, we’re in the second part of a two-week series called “The Generosity Challenge,” and last week, I challenged you to

“Up In a Tree” Sermon Study Guide for November 15, 2020 Downloadable Version Scripture: Luke 19:1-10 1. Passing Through Jericho Climbing a sycamore tree… “mutter” Changes to his life… Rich Young Ruler - Luke 18 2. A Generous Life http://bit.ly/mtp2021 Questions to Discuss or Ponder: Who are the modern equivalent of “tax collectors”? Who are the despised, unwanted and unwelcome people? How do you think the average person in Jericho reacted to Jesus calling Zacchaeus by name? Why? Which of the changes to Zacchaeus’ life is the most dramatic? Why do you say that? What does Jesus mean when he says “salvation” has come to Zacchaeus’ house? In what way(s) is generosity a true response to God’s action toward humanity? Toward you? Where do you see evidence of generosity in the life of our church? Where do you see evidence of generosity in your own life? In the midst of an uncertain world, how is God calling you to respond in generosity? What first step will you take? Scripture for the

John 3:16 November 8, 2020 • Mount Pleasant UMC Twelve years ago, fall 2008, Cathy and I bought our first iPhones. We missed out on the very first one—believe it or not—and when the iPhone 3G came out (yes, “3G” was the second phone, it’s confusing), we talked for quite a while about whether we wanted to jump in at that point or not. I recall the conversation very clearly; I was describing the features of the phone to Cathy, and she was nodding along until I mentioned one feature in particular. GPS. Global Positioning System. We had not, up to that point, purchased one of those GPS units for our cars, but the fact that it was on the phone piqued my wife’s interest. You see, Cathy is—well, some call it being “directionally challenged,” but I usually say she’s “directionally impaired.” I kid you not—one time we were staying in a hotel and every time we left the room—every single time—she turned the wrong way when we came out of our room into the hallway. So she fell in love with the id